Overview

Sidhranor: The Dreaming Isle is classic fantasy setting inspired by a mixture of Sword & Sorcery and traditional Fantasy tropes. Sidhranor draws light but essential inspiration from Celtic and Irish mythologies. Sidhranor's lore is steeped in tales of ancient deities, fae folk, and mystical druids. This influence infuses the setting with rich folklore, mystical creatures, and a deep connection to wild nature. Heavier inspiration is derived from the Sword and Sorcery subgenre, embracing high adventure, gritty heroes, and a world brimming with magic, danger, and epic quests.

Players can expect thrilling battles, encounters with powerful magic, and the chance to become legendary heroes.

The World of Sidhranor

Sidhranor is an old land that according to myth, was broken up many millennia ago in a great war of the gods; splitting the world into many disparate islands that now form an wide and unexplored archipelago.

Humanity is monolithic and hated. Humanity is young to Sidhranor, its origins are from within a millennia. Within that short time however, the Humans of Sidhranor have advanced from rock and bronze to iron. They have spread vastly over Sidhranor and their warlords have done much to disrupt and poison the land. The few other races within Sidhranor hold no love for humanity, and the immortal beings of the Realm of Dreaming find them as shortsighted as mayflies.
Sidhranor is Lawless and Treacherous. Civilization is isolated in small pockets, leading to radical differences between them. Outside of small specific settlements ruled by tyrannical warlords, there is no mortal authority to be beholden to. In the wilderness, the only justice you can expect is the justice you take with your own hands.
The Realm of Dreaming seeds the mortal world with power and peril. There exists another domain that intersects the isle of Sidhranor, a parallel place of great undying magic and myth known as “The Realm of Dreaming” or "The Dreaming Isle". It is a realm of eternal youth, powerful faerie spirits, and old magic fueled by twisted mortal dreams that bleeds over into the Isle of Sidhranor. Its influence can warp the landscape in wild ways, conjure magical islands, spawn twisted beings, and empower individuals with lordly might. While beings from the Realm of Dreaming can and often do cross over into Sidhranor, mortals may find the journey far more dangerous.
Magic is a treacherous force that calls upon unseen powers. Unseen Spirits, known to arcane spellcasters collectively as “the Od”, permeate through the isle of Sidhranor through the veil of the Realm of Dreaming. Those with arcane capabilities are able to redirect the spirits of the Od, reforming them as spells. Think of the Od like water with spells serving as the vessel to be filled with Od. But the entities that make up the Od have their own will, and in areas of great magic they can become very powerful in their own right, and difficult to control.
The world is the playground of immortal entities. Powers both known and unknown lie in the unseen Realm of Dreaming and amongst the sky. In this realm, there is no singular great deity of absolute power and benevolence. Instead, there exist entities within foreign realms that hold power magnitudes greater than any mortal could aim to achieve. Some are benevolent, some are malevolent, and some simply do as they wish and pay mortals no mind. There is no comprehensive list of these beings, for they number as many as stars in the sky. But like stars, some shine brighter than others.
Iron and technology is antithetical to magic. The ore of Iron can disrupt the influence of the Od from the Realm of Dreaming. Those who practice magic and magical creatures directly descended from the Realm of Dreaming, such as Elves react badly to contact with iron (blisters and burns or worse). Wearing it interferes with their powers.
- Elves and those with the ability to cast spells take 1 point of damage per turn of prolonged contact with worked iron and its derivatives, this damage cannot reduce a character to 0 hit points. Such Creatures may be able to procure items made from Star Steel from Elves or other Faeries from the Realm of Dreaming.
- Characters who do not practice magic may use magic items, but risk backlash if also wearing/carrying iron.

Magic in Sidhranor

Elemental Spirits live within everything, called the Od. The Od are the offspring of the primordial sea and night sky and are at their most potent within their ichor of origin. Those with arcane capabilities are able to redirect the spirits of the Od, reforming them as spells. Spirits exist everywhere and in everything, connected by the Od. Like water they swirl around and coalesce into tide pools and rip currents. They manifest most strongly within the Realm of Dreaming and leak out through the veil into the lands of Sidhranor. Some spirits within the Od are so empowered by the concentration that they could be considered gods, and the ancient beings of Sidhranor such as the Eldricainna are connected to them.

Natural Magic: Some practitioners of the mystic arts believe that the method of reshaping the Od is harmful and heretical. They prefer to communicate directly with the spirits of the Od, and in some cases worship its greater spirits. Druids and others of their kind pass down their craft largely through oral traditions and forgotten runes.
Divine Magic: Those that believe in gods often cannot agree on their origins or relationship to the Od. Indeed, Divine “Spells” are often called miracles because they don’t reshape existing spirits, but rather generate effects seemingly without an arcane source within the Od.
Ruin Magic: A heretical practice of magic known simply as “Ruin” or "Chaos" magic. Instead of reforming the Od to create something new, “Ruin” magic destroys the spirits of the Od and uses that energy to generate magical effects.

Humans & Demihumans

The Realm of Sidhranor is the home of many disparate races, species, and creeds. Here is a general overview of a few of them you can find in Sidhranor.

Humans
Most recently, Humans originate from a great invasion into Sidhranor from more than a thousand years ago, ancient kingdoms of Men sailed ships from the east into Sidhranor and conquered it for themselves. When the first men met with the Kingdoms of Ancient beings that called Sidhranor home since before Men were born, they parleyed with and eventually tricked the beings into giving up the land to men. Those tricked beings retreated into the Realm of Dreaming, and are now called Gods, Fae, Fairies, or Elfs.

In time, humans that once used bronze began to use industries of Iron to poison the land and curse the Fae. In the time since, humans have diversified and are now as dynamic as the land itself. They inhabit almost every corner from bustling cities, ancient forests, to remote villages.

But before men, there were gods, and before gods there were monsters.

Dhreugh (Dwarves)
Dhreugh (Dwarves) are immortal stout humanoids that are roughly a head shorter than most Men but noticeably stronger. They are forgers of great weapons and magical artifacts.

Dhreugh predominantly live in isolated subterranean workshops, often resembling burial mounds or found in caves. Every Dhreugh is Male, as the Dhreugh reproduce by forging and sculpting their progeny from clay and stone and have thus far never tried otherwise.

Thus Dhreugh are never born as children but emerge as fully formed artisans, ready for an apprenticeship in their progenitor’s forge.

Dhreugh can procreate with non-Dhreugh and create offspring of any sex, but offspring created in this way do not inherit any power of the Dhreugh. For the Dhreugh, crafting items of esteemed quality is the utmost calling of life, better still if commissioned by great lords, gods, and heroes.

Thus many young Dhreugh set out on quests to gather the materials they will need to craft items that will forever be whispered with the same reverence as the hero who wields it.

Elfs
In the mystical realm of Sidhranor, Elfs are noteworthy as the original inheritors of the land. They are the ageless descendants of the fey lords of the Dreaming Isle. There still exist on Sidhranor some bastions of the Elfs, strongholds of Elfish lords of immense wealth and magical power who watch over the land they still believe is theirs. Humans either fear and hate Elfs or worship their kind as rare demigods of gods from the Realm of Dreaming, and it is not unusual to see Human lords swear fealty to Elf Kings in the pursuit of power and protection.

Elfs in Sidhranor are usually tall, athletic and lithe beings with skin ranging from fair to dark and often wear robes and tunics of a finer material than silk or silver. Their hair is often long and flowing, with hues that span across all colors depending on the season they were born in. Elf Eyes, like polished gemstones, come in various shades of vibrant greens, blues, and silvers.

Elves are the last protectors of Sidhranor, it is their duty from birth to watch over their lands that should have naturally passed down to them and cleanse it of evil forces that seek to use it for their own gain. Despite this, they are still influenced by their Fey blood and are no less cunning or carefree then their bretheren.

Changelings
Accursed beings that are hated by all of mankind, Changelings are magical beings with origins in the Realm of Dreaming. Changelings occur for a variety of reasons, the most common of which being the replacing of a human child in the cradle by some fey force. A human child might be taken due to many factors: to act as a servant, the love of a human child, or even malice.

Sometimes an adult person is taken, especially the newly married and new mothers; young adults were taken to marry fairies instead, while new mothers were often taken to nurse fairy babies; leaving a Changeling minion in their place. Sometimes a child that grows up ravenous, outcast, and deformed is granted the ability to shape change by some fairy.

But the end result is the same, a being that will never be fully trusted within the realms of men.

Outside of their assumed forms, Changelings come in a variety of appearances, similar to elves but usually with more wild, magical, or deformed features.

Changelings adventure for many reasons, some find it their duty to rescue the ones they replaced, others wish to discover their heritage in the realm of dreaming, and yet some others are agents in ill-intentioned schemes.

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